Board OKs water lease to chem depot

A $71,748 lease of raw water to the Pueblo Chemical Depot was approved Tuesday by the Pueblo Board of Water Works.

The lease covers 150 acre-feet of water (almost 49 million gallons) for a price of $376.32 per acre-foot. It also includes a $15,300 administration fee.

The water is used to augment wells at the depot. Typically, the depot has used only about half that much, but is gearing up for operation of a chemical weapons destruction plant, said Alan Ward, water resources manager for the water board.

The price is lower than the minimum $630.63 the board is charging for long-term leases, but about triple the current spot-market rate, because lease negotiations began last year, Ward said.

The board delayed action on the lease in December because of concerns about federal acquisition regulations that were included in the purchase order. The depot decided to remove some of the clauses that caused the most concern, he said.

“The remaining clauses should not pose a significant burden on us, but will add some posting and notification requirements,” Ward said in a memo.

The lease comes following the expiration of a 10-year contract to supply augmentation water that expired last September.